Zipping around in a smart car

Composting, car-pooling, unplugging everything but your oxygen tank when you go to sleep at night?

Child's play. Sue Carette of Vashon Island does all that, and works as a real-estate agent specializing in "green homes," and drives her clients around in a Prius.

So of course she was one of 700 people to test-drive the new smart car at Acura of Seattle last week, intent on saving gas and the environment -- and not being swallowed by an Escalade in the process.

More than 770,000 people in 36 countries have bought smart's "fortwo" model since it was introduced in 1998, hoping to save gas, space, clean air and money.

The cars start at under $12,000 and get 40 miles a gallon, according to the smart company, which apparently hates capital letters as much as e.e. cummings did.

Washington is one of five states with the highest number of reservations in the country, according to a company spokeswoman. Some 1,000 online reservations have been made for cars that will be delivered in January to Acura of Seattle, according to owner Mike O'Brien.

I stood in line, watching four smarts come and go. So cute -- but were they death traps?

Danielle Rockett of Kirkland ticked off her list of concerns: "Is it safe enough? Is it enough car? Does it have enough get-up-and-go?"

Behind us, Scott Bushnell of Lake Forest Park fretted about his height (6 feet 2), and his kids' full-sized cello.

But the smart folks were quick to tell us about the guy who fit two golf bags in the back (he put his driver between the seats); and the couple that fit two fortwos into one pricey New York City parking space. They ditched their second space, saving enough to pay off one fortwo in a year.

The smart doesn't try to be all things to all people, so if you're trying to get the triplets to tuba practice, forget it.

It's a car to get you from here to there at an average speed, and you can park it easily.

The car is built around a "Tridiron safety cell," similar to the driver cages in race cars. There are airbags for both driver and passenger, and seat-belt tensioners to hold you in place.

Just to be sure, I found "smart car crash" on YouTube, and watched a remote-controlled fortwo plow into 20 tons of concrete block at 70 mph. The car was demolished, and no one would have survived. But the steel cage was still in place, and the passenger door opened and closed normally. Thank God.

Finally, it was my turn to get behind the wheel. Riding shotgun was O'Brien, who used to play safety for the Seahawks. I took that as a good sign.

Inside, it didn't feel as small as it looked. Visibility? Fine.

I gunned it down a Tukwila street. Picked up fine.

This would not be a car to take to Costco, O'Brien said.

But for the mean streets of Seattle? Perfect. And believe me, they'll be mean: I watched another test-driver slow down to pull into the lot with a Taurus full of teens close behind.

"Get out of the way!" one kid yelled out the window. No matter. I was smiling.

And Carette?

"I'm in." Of course she is.

Nicole Brodeur appears Tuesday and Friday. Reach her at 206-464-2334 or nbrodeur@seattletimes.com.

She'd get a very bright color.